Pakistan military aircraft crashes, killing two pilots
Second deadly military aviation accident in Pakistan within a week
Dubai: A Pakistan Air Force trainer aircraft crashed in northwestern Pakistan on Monday, killing both pilots on board, the military said, in the second deadly aviation accident involving the armed forces in less than a week.
The aircraft went down near the city of Mardan during a routine training sortie, according to the military’s media wing.
“Pakistan Air Force trainer aircraft on a routine training sortie has crashed near Mardan today,” the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said in a statement, adding that a board of inquiry has been ordered to determine the cause of the accident, media reports said.
The two pilots killed in the crash were identified as Flight Lieutenant Muhammad Qasim Abdullah of the Pakistan Air Force and Lieutenant Taha Abbasi of the Pakistan Navy.
The military did not specify the type of aircraft involved.
Officials said both officers were killed on impact.
The crash comes just days after another military aviation incident in Pakistan-administered Kashmir on Wednesday, when an army helicopter went down, killing all personnel on board.
That helicopter crash, near Muzaffarabad, was attributed to a technical fault during take-off, according to the military.
Earlier, in September last year, five personnel were killed when another army helicopter crashed in Gilgit-Baltistan’s Diamer district, also due to a technical malfunction, Geo News said.
Pakistan has a history of military and civilian aviation accidents, particularly in mountainous regions in the country’s north.
Following Monday’s crash, President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif expressed grief over the deaths and paid tribute to the two officers.
In separate statements, they described the pilots as having “embraced martyrdom” and extended condolences to their families, praising the professionalism and dedication of Pakistan’s armed forces.
The premier said the nation would remember the “sacrifices of its brave sons” who lost their lives in service of the country.
A board of inquiry has been constituted to investigate the cause of the crash, the military said.
